Wine Stopper - Quick Gift

Last weekend, my wife announced that she needed a gift for a friend. She was in a hurry too! After 40 minutes at the lathe, I brought this wine stopper upstairs. Apparently it was a big hit with her friend.

Wood is British Columbia Dogwood, which, incidentally, is our Provincial flower as well. It turned very vicely and was a pleasure to work with.

It’s good to have a few of these glued up and ready to turn for situations just like this one. Very quick little gifts that have that personal touch.

How do you attach the cork to the wood? Do you recycle old corks or do you recommend synthetic for longevity?

I buy the corks from a turning supplier. They come with a hole drilled in them, and grooved dowel. The dowel gets glued into the rough block that gets turned, and once completed, the cork gets glued onto the dowel.

The dowel is also used to grip the blank in a collet chuck for turning. I made my own collet chuck for this purpose.